The 1,000th match in the history of the Heineken Cup will take place at the Liberty Stadium on Sunday afternoon when the Ospreys take on Clermont Auvergne, but life for the Welsh region this season has been far from grand. Despite emerging from Leicester with a draw last Sunday, a side perceived as being big spenders received more opprobrium than praise after blowing an 18-point lead.
"We have taken a beating after Leicester, which is no different to normal," said the Ospreys head coach, Sean Holley. "We are the Ospreys, there to be shot at and it seems to be a hobby of most people in Wales. We were devastated at the time, but on Monday morning it did not seem such a bad result."
The flip side was that Leicester had won their previous 10 Heineken Cup home matches and took an early eight-point lead, something from which few opponents at Welford Road recover. The Ospreys were also far from being at full strength, missing three players from their tight five and still without Gavin Henson, who, at the moment, prefers yachting to rugby.
The Ospreys started the season slowly, winning routinely at Connacht before losing at home to Ulster and Leinster. It turned when they brought in Dan Biggar at fly-half, shifting James Hook to inside-centre: their game developed movement, width and momentum and they started to look like a side stuffed full of internationals.
Biggar made a horrible start at Welford Road, missing the tackle that led to Leicester's opening try and then kicking the restart directly into touch. Far from being fazed, the then teenager (he turns 20 today) took the game by the collar and masterminded a comeback. The Ospreys' decision to move Hook from his preferred fly-half position has caused controversy in Wales, but it was a statement of attacking intent from the region that has so far had a positive impact.
Biggar already has three Wales caps. Although he has the cocksureness of Jonathan Davies, voluble and confrontational, his fly-half inspirations are more prosaic, Jonny Wilkinson and Andrew Mehrtens, players known for their ability to control a game rather than their flair. Against the Newport Gwent Dragons at Rodney Parade last season, Biggar at one point challenged the referee and had to be calmed down by his team-mates.
"Dan is still a kid, if a pretty good one," Holley said. "He is a confident lad, but you have to rein him back so that he does not upset people or boil over into over-confidence. He makes his views known and offers a contrast to quiet players we have behind such as James, Sonny Parker and, in the past, Gavin Henson."
There was a moment at Welford Road when, with Leicester fighting back, Biggar ran over to his forwards and, never mind the big names such as Ryan Jones, Jerry Collins, Marty Holah, Alun Wyn Jones and Ian Gough, let them know what he thought of their efforts.
"I have no problem fronting up to Lions or international players," Biggar said. "You do not have to have won 100 caps to gain their respect. As outside-half, you have to make decisions and stick with them. There were times last season when I did perhaps have too much to say, but I have matured as a person and as a player. I am a young man now: back then, perhaps, I was a boy. I am determined to keep as cool as possible but I will always have an edge to my game."
Biggar was offered the chance to start his senior career with Harlequins on £30,000 a year, but he had his heart set on playing for the Ospreys, who then had Hook and Henson vying for the outside-half jersey. Whereas Hook is a classical outside-half, capable of beating an opponent with a show of the ball and a swivel of his hips, Biggar is a controller, quickly weighing up his options and he has a range of passes in his armoury as well as an array of kicks.
"I am a shy person off the field but on it I believe in my ability and that gives me confidence," he said. "Having players either side of me who are Lions in Mike Phillips and James Hook gives you every chance of succeeding. James has been brilliant for me and after I had a poor first 10 minutes, he told me to keep my head up and show what I could do and he helped me through a bad spell."
The Wales squad for the autumn internationals will be picked next week and Biggar is likely to be included. "It would be a dream," he said. "I had a taste last season and the 2011 World Cup is one of my goals. I will need to put in a performance against Clermont Auvergne.
"They are one of the few French sides who travel well and it will be one of the toughest games we have this year. If we play our stuff and are sensible, we can get the four points that would put us in the box seat in the group and Welford Road would look like a good result."
